Sna-man



(No Model.) 2 Sheet,s-Sl1eet 1.

' G. W. SNAMAN, Jr.

TOY

PaizentedJuly 26, 1892.

. //V V E /I/ TUI? (No. Model.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2. n G. W. SNAMAN, Jr.

TOY.

Patented July 26, 1892. 5/ p /p A WITNESS/58 A# UNITED STATES r PATENT OEEICE.

GEORGE XV. SNAMAN, JR., OF ALLEGHENY, PENNSYLVANIA.

TOY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 479,534, dated July 26, 1892.

Application led August 8, 1891. Serial No. 402,146.V (No model.)

To @ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE WV. SNAMAN, Jr.,vof Allegheny, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Toy, of which the followingY is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to a novel device for the amusement and instruction of children; and it consists, essentially, of a small cabinet holding picture-slides in series which are springpressed upwardly, each slide being held depressed by sets of rods that extend to letters on a forward alphabet-board. When the set of rods which restrain a picture-slide are properly manipulated to spell the name of the object represented by the picture, said slide is released and upwardly projectedV to display the picture thereon.

My invention further consists in the construction and combination of parts, as is hereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the gures.

Figure l is a front perspective view of the device. Fig. 2 is aplan view in section on the line 2 2 in Fig. l. Fig. 3 is an interior view,,broken, showing parts of the contained mechanism. Fig. 4 is a plan view of a modification. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectionY taken on the line 5 5 in Fig. 4; and Fig. 6 is a broken longitudinal section of parts shown in Fig. 4, taken on the line 6 6 in Figs. 4 and 5.

The most simple form for constructing the device is shown in Figs. l, 2, and 3, and consists of working parts contained in a small casing or cabinet A.

The cabinet may be'given different forms, but preferably is made rectangular, laterally considered, and at a proper dist-ance from the front edge has a box-like formation B projected above the part C in advance of the same, which latter has a vflat top surface, as shown in Fig. l. The rear wall of the portion B is vertically channeled at intervals to adapt it to afford grooves that are preferably dovetailed on their parallel side edges, which grooves loosely retain a series of slid es D, that are formed on their side edges to correspond with those of the grooves they enter and have such a proportionate length as will permit their upper edges to align with each other and with the top of the rear wall when fully depressed. Each of the slides D has a forwardly-projecting ledge d produced on its lower edge, and from said ledges a pin or hook Z9 is sufliciently'projected on the front edge of each to engage with a spring c, which may be a gum band, as shown, or of any other suitable form and character, as preferred.

Across the inner surface of the rear wall of the cabinet A, a short distance below the top edge of the wall,a keeper-bar d is secured, which is furnished with a series of pins or hooks e, that vertically align in pairs with the hooks or pins b below them, and upon each pair of said pins one of the said springs c is placed in a slightly-stretched condition.

It will be seen from the manner of connecting the springs owith the slidesD and keeperbar cl that the slides will be normally held in elevated adjustment by the tension of the springs, which will elastically yield or stretch and allow the slides to be depressed within the cabinet A when said slides are pressed upon by the operator. r

The top side of the front section O on the cabinet A has several rows of spaced slots e formed in it, which slots in number may be equal to the number of letters in the alphabet, or a less number may be provided, if preferred, all of the slots extending in parallel lines from the front toward the rear of the table or top wall of the section- O. As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, there are rods g, of any proper material, extended from the slots e rearward and are loosely secured to slide freely by staples g. Each rod g has its front end bent upward and projected through a slot e', so as to be readily manipulated.

Letters of the alphabet are affixed in any desired order on the top face of the section O, one letter being located adjacent to each slot. Preferably they are arranged in sequence from A to Z, if so many letters are needed in the formation of the device.

Upon the slides D, facing the front of the cabinet A, a pictorial representation of any familiar animal or object is painted or secured, a diiferent picture being placed on each slide. A proper number of rods g are extended toward a slide D from the slots el and caused to bear on the ledge projected vo (see Fig. 5) and are arranged in sets.

therefrom, the length of said rods being such that their upwardly-bent end portions will lie near to the rear terminals of the slots they are located in when their opposite ends are engaged with a slide-ledge a.

The indicating-letters of the alphabet that are severally adjacent to the front ends of the rods g, grouped toward a slide D, should spell the name of the animal or object represented on said slide, and it is essential that the ends of the rods g should be disposed in 'such order as will allow the representative letters therefor to be spelled 'properly as each rod is withdrawn from the engaged ledge.

To illustrate the operation, if the picture of a cat should be affixed upon the upper slide in Fig. 2 the rods g, leading from the slots, will be indicated by the letters C, Af and j T, and preferably the rod carrying fA is made to bear on the ledge c at one side of the pin b and the rods carrying C and T on the other side of said pin. Then the rods g are pulled in the order required t0 spell Y Cat, the slide whe'reon a cat is illustrated will bereleased, and the contraction of the spring c will cause it to throw the slide upward until its ledge a strikes against the lower edge of the keeperbar d, which will limit the upward projection of the slide and fully expose the depiction of a cat onits front face. y v

Any desired number `of, slidesk D may be provided, and in case the same letter of the alphabet is used to spell the names of animals or objects on different slides a supplementary rod g2 is connected with the. main rod g, as shown in Fig. 2, where the letter D is found in the words Bird and Dog, that are illustrated on two slides; also, the letter O in the names Dog and Horseuis provided with a main rod and a supplementary rod to apply the letter to each name on the separate slides.

In case the supplementary rods g2 are used, it willbe evident that bothV the main rod and the supplementary rod will be moved when the main rod is actuated. This will not have any effect on the slide that is to remain concealed, as itis necessary that all of the rods on a ledge be withdrawn from it before the slide will bereleased, and to secure efficient action the rod that represents the last letter of the name of the object on the slide should be located near the center of the ledge on said slide, so that thecpicture will remain concealed until all the rods on the ledge have been properly drawn from the slide.

In Figs and, 6 a slightly-modified form for the slide-holding device is shown, which consists of a set of trigger-bolts t' for each slide D, that are supported to slide toward or from the picture-holding slides, which latter are `arranged in parallel series on two walls at the rear of the cabinet A, as shown in Fig. 4, and adapted to slide upwardly. The trigger-bolts i loosely engage two parallel walls n Each group representing the proper letters to spell the name of the object illustrated on the slide engaged by the grouped trigger-bolts has rods g loosely attached to its front end, which rods are pivoted forwardly to rockarms p, which are loosely supported by pintle-bolts p in slots formed in the top wall of the cabinet-section C', the arms p having button-heads p2 on their upper ends, which when depressed will draw the trigger-bolts and release them from engagement with the ledges a, whereon they rest when the slides D are depressed to conceal the pictures on their faces.

As represented in Fig. G, the trigger-bolts t' in each group are arranged in oblique rows in the supporting-walls n o, so that they will bear one at a time on a picture-slide ledge,

'the bolt which represents the first letter of the name to be spelledy being lowermostinthe group and the first to be withdrawn. Asprin'g fr is placed on each trigger-bolt to normally project it toward the ledges a. ,Eachjof the trigger-bolts hashits end that engages with a ledge a sloped, asindicated in Fig. 5, and the ledge is also undercut on its forward edge, so that a draft on each trigger-bolt will allow the picture-slide to rise until it strikes theuneXt bolt of the group, and so on until the name is spelled properly, and the pictureslide upwardly projected until its `ledgestrikes the cross-bar d or on the lower edge of the guidewall a', that is parallel withuand in front of the outer-rear wallof the cabinet A.

The means for restraining the slides `D and releasing the same, just described, is best adapted for a cabinet of considerable` dimensions holding a number ofl slides, while the plan of construction rst explained is more simple and cheaper to produce, both embodying the same general features of construction.

It is claimed for the toy herein shown and described that it will be of great advantage in the instruction of children by exemplifying the signiiicance of letters andtheir combinations to form words of one syllable and at the same time amuse I the scholar, whose ingenuity is taxed to produce the necessary combinations for a release of the pictures.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-' y v j 1. A toy compris-ing a cabinet,pindependent verticallymovable picture-slides therein, a contractile spring for each slide that elevates the slide, a set of reciprocating trigger-rods for each slide, adapted to hold it depressed and release it when all the rods of a set ,are moved, and a letter for each rod, substantially as described. v

2. The combination, with a cabinet and a series of independent picture-slides vertically movable therein, of a transversecross-bar in the cabinet, a contractile spring for each slide, connecting it with the cross-bar and adapted to separately move its connected slide, a set of connectible reciprocating trigger-rods for IOO IIO

each slide, which release it when all the rods for a slide are retracted, and an appropriate designating-letter for each trigger-rod, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with a cabinet, va series of independent picture-holding slides vertically and separately movable therein at one end of the cabinet, and a transverse bar in the cabinet near the slides, of a contractile spring for and connecting each slide with the cross-bar and normally elevating said slide, a set of longitudinally-movable trigger-rods for each slide, together adapted to hold the slide depressed and its spring stretched until all the rods of a set are retracted, and an alphabetic letter for each rod of a set that in proper order indicates the name ofthe pictured representation on the slide, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with a cabinet having an elevated rear section and a lower front section having series of slots in its top wall, a series of picture-holdin g slides vertically movable on the rear wall of the cabinet, and a horizontal cross-bar in the cabinet and near the slides, of a spring for each slide, connecting it and the cross-bar, and a set of detent trigger-rods for each slide, extended from the slots in the cabinet-wall to engage ledges on the lower end of the slides, each rod being designated by`a letter l of the alphabet and each set of rods adapted to hold a slide depressed and its sprin g stretched, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with a cabinet having an elevated rear section and a lower front section having a series of slots in its top wall, a series of picture-slides vertically movable on the rear Wall of the cabinet, each slide provided with a forwardly-projecting transverse ledge at its lower end, and a horizontal crossbar in the cabinet, near the slides and above the ledges, of a retracting-spring connecting each slide with the cross-bar, a set of longitudinally-movable trigger-rods for each slid e, adapted to loosely engage its ledge, supplementary rods for some of the trigger-rods, and a designating-letter for each rnain trigger-rod, substantially as described.

GEORGE w. sNAMAN, JR.

Witnesses:

FRED. WALDscHMrDT, WVM. TINNEMEYEE, J r. 

